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Women's Cardiovascular Healthcare Foundation
Agir pour le Coeur des Femmes
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Mental Health

Mental health directly influences cardiovascular risk in women

Recommendations from the European Society of Cardiology on mental health and cardiovascular disease published in 2025
“ESC 2025 Clinical Consensus Statement on mental health and cardiovascular disease”

Prof. Sarah Tebeka, a psychiatrist at Louis Mourier Hospital in Colombes and expert ambassador for Agir pour le Cœur des Femmes, highlights the importance of considering mental health in the prevention of cardiovascular disease in women.

Mental health directly influences cardiovascular risk in women

Depression, stress, and anxiety increase this risk, which is often underestimated in women.

Mental health is a major determinant of cardiovascular health in women. Depression is associated with a doubling of the risk of cardiovascular events, particularly myocardial infarction and stroke. Chronic stress contributes to the activation of inflammatory, neuroendocrine, and autonomic mechanisms involved in cardiovascular pathophysiology. In women, these conditions often remain underdiagnosed due to more atypical clinical presentations.
Depression, anxiety, and stress also promote harmful behaviors—smoking, physical inactivity, and poor treatment adherence—that contribute to a worsened cardiovascular prognosis. Certain periods of hormonal vulnerability, such as pregnancy or menopause, represent pivotal moments during which mental health disorders can amplify cardiovascular susceptibility.
Early identification of mental health disorders is thus a key lever for prevention. An integrated approach involving cardiologists, primary care physicians, and mental health professionals is essential to reduce the cardiovascular burden in women and sustainably improve their quality of life.
Agir pour le cœur des femmes works to improve early screening, alerting, and referral for women by fully integrating mental health into cardiovascular prevention.

 
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